12/02/2019
WHY LEH IS THE HEADQUATER OF LADAKH DIVISION?
Reason 3: Diversity and Social Acceptance
For any region, its capital or headquarter should be a place which reflects the whole region. It should be a melting pot of all cultures, languages and communities of that particular region to symbolise it's diversity.
Leh today is a cosmopolitan city with a diverse population. Peoples from all corners of Ladakh including Kargil, Drass, and other parts of Kargil have lived here and worked here for generations. Thousands of peoples from Zanskar, Wakha Mulbekh and other buddhist pockets of Kargil have even migrated to Leh over the years in search of a secure and better life and since called Leh their home.
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The diversity in Leh doesn't stop only at Ladakh, hundreds and thousands of peoples from all across the country and even from different countries work here and live here peacefully.
Everyone, no matter who they are, what they do, where they are from, have not only survived but thrived here, making Leh the ideal choice not only for the Ladakhis but also for outsiders.
On the contrary, Kargil since it creation in 1979 has turned into a hyper conservative Shia dominated region. The gloomy kargil town perfectly reflects it with uniformity and repetitive patterns both in the shops and the peoples running it.
Kargil has not been able to ensure a friendly environment not only for peoples from neighbouring Leh district but also for a certain section of its own population.
Buddhist communities in the district have accused the successive leadership of Kargil for systematically discriminating them again and again.This is evident from the mass migration of Buddhists from all corners of Kargil district to Leh, and parts of Himachal pradesh leaving behind their homes and ancestral properties.
As of today, the situations hasn't changed much, along with the overall attitude and social acceptance of general population of Kargil towards peoples from Zanskar, Drass, Chiktan, and Dards of A***n valley.
The a absence of any buddhist owned business establishments in the Kargil city is one of the best proof for all allegations against the majority populations.
Being the district Headquarter, all minorities of the district are bound to have some place to live, pray and work from, but Buddhist from all across Zanskar and Kargil has been denied permission to even renovate an old buddhist monastery in the town for years despite repeated requests to the leadership and the administration. Allotting a dedicated land in Kargil for minorities and providing funds for the same has never been considered.
Also the buddhist from different parts of Kargil, who frequent the district headquater are finding it hard to even find a house on rent, let alone buying land and properties or setting up businesses.
The mistreatment of non-Muslims in Kargil doesn't limit to the minorities of Kargil district alone. Any buddhists from Leh or Zanskar are treated as untouchables even in more urbanized areas. There has been many instances, where buddhist students who unknowingly drank water from a tap/handpump were scolded and abused by whole villagers for polluting it . Similar experiences are faced by most buddhist at some point of time while traveling through Kargil.
The magnitude of the marginalization and the mistrust is so huge that the peoples of Zanskar have been demanding separate District and their own MLA to as they see no hope from Kargili Administration and leadership .
This doesn't stop there, When Leh is chosen over Kargil for the Divisional Headquarter recently, minorities in Kargil including Zanskar and buddhist pockets in Kargil happily celebrated it instead of joining the protest or advocating for Kargil.
Thus for the overall development of all communities, the dignity of minorities and micro communities, and to maintain a secular environment within the Ladakh Division. It's important to Keep the Headquarter of Ladakh division at Leh.
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Let logic and facts win.
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